


The monster which doth mock the meat it feeds on

by Pseudothyrum



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Gen, Manipulative Hannibal, Suicide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-14
Updated: 2014-06-14
Packaged: 2018-02-04 07:08:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1770169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pseudothyrum/pseuds/Pseudothyrum
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Will commits suicide in prison, and Hannibal seizes the perfect opportunity to reveal himself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The monster which doth mock the meat it feeds on

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the kinkmeme prompt "Will finds a way to take his life in prison. Hannibal takes this as the perfect timing for him to come forward as a murderer. He wants to see the look on Alana and Jack's faces as they realize that Will was speaking the truth all along. "

They find him in the early hours of the morning a little over a week after they found Beverly. He is lying in a pool of blood in the centre of his cell, wrists slashed on an edge of the bed that he had worked patiently free. Chilton alerts Jack immediately and washes his hands of the whole affair. Jack calls Alana first, giving himself something to do, anything except thinking about this. She cannot stop the tears, though she does her best to mute them over the phone; she promises to come into Jack’s office immediately. Hannibal is calm and collected, and he promises to come in as well. Jack cradles his face in his hands after hanging up, and prays for a little of Hannibal’s composure.

***

When Hannibal hangs up he stares at the phone for a long time. Disappointing. He had so many plans, he had expected Will to be more resilient than this. They were going to be such good friends. Ah well. No use crying over spilled blood. Hannibal stands up, and begins to set affairs in order. 

***

The mood in the entire FBI building is subdued, the air is oppressive with the weight of loss and conflicted emotions. Nobody knows how to react to this; Will was one of them, but he was also a killer. Everybody treads lightly around Jack’s office, aware of his closeness with Will. When Hannibal arrives Jack and Alana are sitting in silence, neither meeting the others’ eyes. It feels as though they have been arguing, but perhaps stopped in deference to his arrival. Both have put on masks of serenity, though the set of Jack’s mouth, the red of Alana’s eyes, belie them. He sits and lets Jack tell them all about Will’s suicide. He watches out of the corner of his eye as Alana struggles desperately not to break down. Even Jack’s voice breaks as he describes the scene. When he finally stops talking Hannibal knows it is time. Time to take the next step, and see what happens next. 

***

When he confesses, they have such different reactions. Alana goes still and silent, her previous displays of emotion constricted suddenly by shock. Jack’s brow furrows, his face grows thunderous, and Hannibal can feel the hostility radiating from him. He can see the very moment Jack breaks, when he realises that Will had been telling the truth all along. He can see it in Jack’s eyes when he realises that Will died for nothing, an innocent man driven to suicide by the very man who should have protected him. It is sweeter than a fine wine, that moment of despair in Jack’s eyes.

***

When he tells them about all the special meals he has prepared for them, Alana runs from the room with her hand over her mouth. Jack is suppressing it valiantly, and Hannibal allows himself a smirk. Yes, it was all worth it. 

***

Of course Jack arrests him, much rougher when he cuffs him than he strictly needs to be. Hannibal revels in it, this physical evidence of the pain he has caused. When he is marched to the cells he can feel the difference in the air. It is hostile now, closing in around him, trying to find a way under his skin so that it can hurt him as he has hurt them. But they never can, and he wonders if they know this. He wonders if they know, even now, that he has the upper hand. 

***

Alone in his cell, Hannibal grins broadly. So Will is dead. Jack and Alana are alive, their grief is fresh and hot and strong. He will never run out of victims, even here. They will never be free.


End file.
